Between a Rock and a Hot Place LP

Why Fifty Is Not the New Thirty

About the Book

"Laugh-out-loud funny."—O, the Oprah magazine

"Tracey Jackson confronts the speed bumps of life with wit, brilliant insights, and...common sense....Between a Rock and a Hot Place is more than a good read, it’s good company."—John Berendt, author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

Hollywood screenwriter Tracey Jackson (The Guru, Ashes to Ashes, The Other End of the Line, The Ivy Chronicles, Confessions of a Shopaholic, and others), delivers a funny, fearless, no-holds-barred look at what it really means to turn 50 today. Offering insight into the joys, hurdles, and life lessons surrounding the half-century mark, Jackson explores topics as wide-ranging as hormone replacement therapy, online dating, lifts, nips, tucks, libidos, finances, coping with death, and preparing for the future.

As she approached her fiftieth birthday, Tracey Jackson found herself bombarded—at the gym, at parties, in conversations with friends—by a catchphrase on everyone's lips. “Fifty is the new thirty” and the endless magazine articles, photos, and T-shirts proclaiming the new aphorism had apparently bloomed out of a collective sense of denial, masking the true fears of a generation unwilling to relinquish their youth.

With a comedy writer's training and a screenwriter's eye for detail, Jackson skewers the myth in a hilarious, bare-knuckled, and ultimately practical appraisal of what middle age really means today. Turning fifty is a wake-up call—but one that can be greeted with a plan. Between a Rock and a Hot Place navigates, with unsparing honesty and unerring wit, the confusion and uncertainty of the most significant uncharted transition in our lives.

Educator and Librarian Resources

Critical Praise

“Jackson covers it all . . . with humor and a firm hand. . . . The book is nothing less than what my own grandmother used to call a ‘godsend.’” —

“Laugh-out-loud funny.” —

“Finally, there is a voice of reality to counter the claims of a youth-oriented culture and put forward the idea that successful aging isn’t about denying reality…. Jackson writes with the humor of Nora Ephron, the honesty of a fiftysomething, and the reality of medical science.” —

“A fiercely funny book about a most unfunny subject-aging.” —

“Glib, gossipy, and genuinely gutsy, Jackson’s take on this middle-aged milestone will have any woman who is 50, approaching 50, or waving bye-bye in the rear-view mirror wondering, ‘Who is this woman and how did she get inside my head?’” —

“The cure for fear is laughter, and this book offers a powerful antidote to all the scary aspects of aging. Jackson’s stunning candor and sparkling high spirits will have women of all ages laughing as they confront everything from menopause to wrinkles, thanks to this funny, practical and engaging book.” —

“Tracey Jackson confronts the speed bumps of life with wit, brilliant insights, and the kind of common sense that leaves you wondering, ‘Now, why didn’t I think of that?’ Between a Rock and a Hot Place is more than a good read, it’s good company.” —

“Between a Rock and a Hot Place is sexy, witty, energizing, smart, and full of terrific advice…. Run, do not walk, to get the book, and then call your nutritionist, your GYN, your health club, your nearest Whole Foods, your mothers and daughters, and tell them all about it.” —

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